Notably, Brian Ballard, whose lobbying firm Susie Wiles went to work for following the Scott campaign, joined fellow-Mormon Mitt Romney‘s presidential campaign last week. Wiles has not said what she plans to do following her departure from the Huntsman campaign.

John Weaver, a top adviser to the Huntsman campaign, told the Washington Post the campaign is shifting gears and entering a more aggressive phase.

Thursday marks one month into Huntsman’s campaign. Although the Huntsman campaign is in line with other GOP hopefuls in terms of fund-raising, he is still barely registering in national polls. Politico reported the Huntsman campaign will have a senior staff meeting today in Washington, D.C., to discuss how to re-invigorate the campaign.

Huntsman did not file a second-quarter fund-raising report with the Federal Election Commission because he entered the race so late. But his campaign has reportedly raised about $4.2 million. Although far behind Romney’s $18 million, he raised more money than Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-Minn.) who continues to climb in national polls. (Read more from OpenSecrets Blog about fund-raising by Republican presidential candidates here.)

Huntsman has remained largely in Romney’s shadow, struggling to reel in high-profile donors, and losing supporters from Utah, where he was formerly governor, to Romney.

WEST SOLICITS CONTRIBUTIONS AFTER INSULTS: Rep. Allen West (R-Fla.) is playing the victim in attempt to raise more campaign cash.

West called Democratic National Committee Chairwoman Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-Fla.) “vile”, “despicable” and “not a lady” in an email to several members of Congress, in reference to an attack she made against him on the floor of the U.S. House of Representatives for his support of the Republican’s “cut, cap and balance” budget plan.

Then, he used to same words to make a fund-raising plea to supporters.

A fund-raising email with subject line “vile, despicable, and unprofessional” calls Wasserman Schultz, an “attack dog for the ‘vast left wing conspiracy,'” and says West is the subject of those attacks.

It then goes on to tell supporters: “It’s time like these that I need friends with me. Please make a donation of $25 or more at my website right now.”

West proved to be a successful fund-raiser during the 2010 election and during the first few months of his congressional term.

West has raised more than any other House GOP freshman at this point in 2011, as OpenSecrets Blog previously reported. West raised more than $1.6 million during the second quarter alone, bringing his year-to-date haul to $2.1 million. That’s about five times as much as the average amount raised by other GOP freshman.

If West continues fund-raising at this pace, he’s on his way to surpassing the $6.5 million he raised during the 2010 election cycle. His opponent last fall, incumbent Rep. Ron Klein, raised $3.7 million.

AMERICAN BEVERAGE ASSOCIATION LOBBYING FIZZES: Lobbying by the American Beverage Association is in steep decline, a Center for Responsive Politics review of lobbying reports filed Wednesday reveal.

Through the second quarter of 2011, the ABA has spent $480,000 on lobbying — $240,000 each quarter. During the first half of 2010, meanwhile, the ABA had spent about $9.4 million on lobbying. That’s about a 95 percent decrease on money spent on lobbying.

Lobbying by the ABA reached an incredible high in 2009 and 2010, as the organization worked to keep a “soda tax” out of the Democrats’ health care reform legislation, as OpenSecrets Blog previously reported.

In 2009, the ABA spent about $18.8 million on lobbying, and in 2010, the organization spent $9.9 million. Prior to that, lobbying totals averaged around $650,000 per year.

One reason for the sharp increase in lobbying those two years is the increased push for a tax on soft drinks. In 2009, the ABA lobbied on eight specific issues related to taxes, it lobbied on six such issues in 2010, and has lobbied on three so far in 2011.

So far this year, the ABA has lobbied on environmental issues focusing on recycling, monitoring implementation of the Child Nutrition Act and school beverage guidelines, and continuing to “oppose proposals to tax of sugary beverages,” according to the Center’s review of lobbying reports.

Although lobbying totals so far in 2011 are far below that of the previous two years, the ABA is still on pace to spend more on lobbying in 2011 than it had in years prior to 2009.

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